JUST.

Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash

Just.

It’s a word that I was told when I asked my friend, on what should I write on. “Just”, was her response.

Just.

To just write.

It’s profound. Like all of life’s profound truths. It’s simplicity, it’s succinctness, it’s tiny size, belies what lies within it.

Just.

Why don’t we just write?

Why don’t we just talk?

Why don’t we just do things on the spur of moment?

Why don’t we Just be?

No. But we want each activity to serve a purpose. We want each conversation to lead to something permanent. We want to do things which are meaningful. We want to live lives that are meaningful, in some grand, cosmically relevant way.

What could possibly be wrong with that?

What could possibly be better than that?

Except perhaps, Just this – It doesn’t work.

I tried it. I tried it with everything I had. I have friends who’re trying it. Successful high flying friends. Doesn’t seem to be working for anyone.

I’m not saying that they’re all lost, or miserable. But barely any seem deeply happy. Barely any see capable of living in deep awe of the miracle that is life….every single moment of their life. Most put all the value, all the meaning in some combination of circumstances/events that makes sense to them, and go about spending all of their living moments in making sure that these moments can be brought to existence. But to throw away millions of equally precious moments in order to appreciate a handful? What sort of intelligence is that?

All that effort, all that time, all that energy that gets spent trying to bring their ‘dreams’ alive, wouldn’t a better use of that energy be in trying to learn how to be alive now. Wherever you are. Whatever is happening around you. To just be. Fully there, breathing deeply these ephemeral moments which are always fleeting by. To catch a true glimpse of That, which is one of the subtlest, most toughest things to do. Instead we feel like after we reach our dream situation/goal, that’s when we’ll start living these moments. But in the victory of success our defeat is already destined. In reaching the goal while putting off living, we’ve already trained the mind to be always looking forward and not at now. When that moment does arrive, we’re incapable of looking at the Now and enjoy the Now, and breathe the Now, and live it. We arrive exactly where we are Now. After a long long journey, we reach nowhere.

So why not instead just start it Now?

Why not instead just live it Now?

Why not just learn to be…..Now.

Just be.

Just live.

Just breathe.

Just do what life demands to be done.

Just be happy, irrespective. Because the greatest achievement of our lives can’t even match the miracle of just being alive.

Just.